Mirrorless war: Canon EOS R outsells Nikon Z7 two-to-one in Japan

When the playground rivalry between Canon and Nikon moved up to the sixth form, as both companies released their full-frame mirrorless cameras, the industry was eager to see who would establish dominance.

Well, the first official sales figures are in from Japan – and it's first blood for Canon. According to sales data from BCN Retail, the Canon EOS R has sold around twice as many units as the Nikon Z7 – and is even outselling each of Sony's models.

The report (hat tip to Canon Watch) paints a fascinating picture. Until Canon and Nikon entered the fray, Sony enjoyed a 99.5% share of the full-frame mirrorless market (the other 0.5% belonging to Leica).

In Japan, the Canon EOS R has been outselling all its rivals

Now that the big boys have arrived, Sony's share has dropped to 67%. The Nikon Z7 grabbed 10.4%, while the Canon EOS R stole a whopping 22.1% of Sony's lunch money – impressive, considering that it only came out in October, while Nikon's camera was released in September.

More alarming for the previous ruler of the playground is that the EOS R is outselling the Sony A7III and the Sony A7RIII, which are widely considered the "best" full-frame mirrorless bodies (while the EOS R famously has many limitations).

Where does this leave Panasonic, set to enter the full-frame mirrorless market in 2019? And where does it leave the APS-C and micro four-thirds formats, both of which saw big sales dips (particularly the latter)? The mirrorless war may soon claim its first casualties…